SKILL 28: USE COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES CORRECTLY

STRUCTURE AND WRITTEN EXPRESSION

SKILL 28: USE COMPARATIVES AND SUPERLATIVES CORRECTLY

The problem with some of the comparative and superlative sentences on the TOEFL test is that the comparative and superlative can be used incorrectly.

The comparative and superlative have different uses, and you should understand these different uses to answer such questions correctly.

examples

·      The history class is larger than the math class. ·      Mary is more intelligent than Sue.

In the first example the history class is being compared with the math class. In the second example Mary is being compared with Sue.

The superlative is used when there are more than two items to compare and you want to show the one that is the best, the biggest, or in some way the most outstanding.

examples

·      The history class is the largest in the school. ·      Mary is the most intelligent of all the students in the class.

In the first example the history class is compared with all the other classes in the school, and the history class is larger than each of the other classes. In the second example, Mary is compared with all the other students in the class, and Mary is more intelligent than each of the other students.

The following chart outlines the possible forms of comparatives and superlatives.

EXERCISE 28: Each of the following sentences contains a comparative or superlative. Circle the comparative and superlative. Then indicate if the sentences are correct (C) or incorrect (I).

_______	3	The engineers hired this year have more experience than those hired last year.
_______	4	The graduate assistant informed us that the first exam is the most difficult of the two.
_______	5	He bought the more powerful stereo speakers that he could find.
_______	6	The afternoon seminar was much more interesting than the morning lecture.
_______	7	The food in this restaurant is the best of the restaurant we visited last week.
_______	8	The plants that have been sitting in the sunny window are far healthier than the other plants.
_______	9	The photocopies are the darkest that they have ever been.
_______	10	The first journal article is the longest of the second article.

 

ANSWER KEY

1	C
2	I	(more should be the most)
3	C
4	I	(should be more difficult than the second)
5	I	(more should be most)
6	C
7	I	(the best of should be better than the food in)
8	C
9	C
10	I	(the longest of should be longer than)